GREECE: Verdict on the Schinoussa case & intimidation of witness

On July 26, 2018, the 3-Member Appeal Penal Court of Athens gave its verdict on the Schinoussa case, in which Dr. Christos Tsirogiannis has been one of the main witnesses for the Greek State against the Papadimitriou family (heir of the dealer Christos Michaelides, partner of Robin Symes, antiquities dealers). According to an email from July 27, 2018, from the State lawyer (translated from Greek):

‘The Court by majority found guilty Despina and Dimitri Papadimitriou for the act of embezzlement of monuments and convicted each one of them to suspended imprisonment of 4 years. It also ratified the seizure and ordered the confiscation of the seized items’.

The day after, a law firm in London representing the Papadimitriou family, sent Dr. Tsirogiannis the following letter, obviously seeking to intimidate the witness.

Dr. Tsirogiannis noted that:

‘I state that I have done my duty as a Greek citizen, as an archaeologist and as a witness to the truth. I reserve every legal right related to this case.’

For further information about the Schinoussa-case, see the following links: